Properly Prepared Beef Remains Safe; Meat Institute Calls For Guidance to Protect Workers 

As the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a nationwide order including requiring lactating dairy cows to test negative for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) before interstate transport, the Meat Institute today said that properly prepared beef remains safe to eat and called for USDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to provide worker safety guidance specific to beef processors to ensure workers are protected from infection.

“USDA and CDC are working overtime to understand the spread of the virus...

State Officials Report Human Case of Bird Flu in Texas, Second Ever in U.S. History

State officials Monday reported the first human case of avian influenza A(H5N1) in Texas, marking the second-ever human case of H5N1 flu, or HPAI, in the United States and the first tied to exposure to cattle. 

The individual in Texas had been in direct contact with dairy cattle thought to be infected with avian influenza. The person, who had testing performed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) over the weekend, exhibited eye inflammation as their only symptom and is being treated with the antiviral drug oseltamivir. The risk to the general public remains low, said the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS)...

Albertsons Companies Voluntarily Recalls Five ReadyMeals and Store-Made Taco Kits 

Albertsons Companies has voluntarily recalled five ReadyMeals and store-made taco kits supplied by Fresh Creative Foods due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination. The select meals and kits contain a recalled cheese ingredient supplied by Rizo-López Foods, Inc., of Modesto, California.

The FDA and CDC, in collaboration with state and local partners, are investigating illnesses in a multi-year, multistate outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes infections linked to queso fresco and cotija cheeses manufactured by Rizo-López Foods. Rizo-López Foods’ recall announcement can be found here. 

Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Ground Beef

Investigators are working to identify the source of the ground beef sick people ate in this outbreak. Any ground beef can have germs, like Salmonella. Always cook ground beef to an internal temperature of 160°F.

Fast Facts

• Illnesses: 16
• Hospitalizations: 6
• Deaths: 0
• States: 4
• Recall: No
• Investigation status: Active

Source of the Outbreak
All of the people who remembered the type of ground beef they ate and where they bought it reported eating 80% lean ground beef purchased from ShopRite locations in Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York...